The mark of a good team is how they bounce back after a tough loss, and we are soon to find out that answer for the South Carolina Gamecocks. There were a lot of unknowns for the Gamecocks going into the 2024 season, but a lot of eyebrows were raised when they went into Lexington and smoked the Wildcats and then jumped out to the 17-0 lead last Saturday against the Tigers.
Despite the tough loss this past Saturday, there is a lot of positive going for this South Carolina team, but they have no time to dwell on what should have happened against LSU. After this Saturday's game against Akron business really picks up with the next four games being Ole Miss, Alabama, Oklahoma, and Texas A&M.
I have confidence Shane Beamer will have his team ready to go and focused on the future rather than dwelling on the past, but sometimes the mental of young men is an unknown week to week. The Game Cocks defense is finally healthy and has wrecked havoc on their opponents to this point of the season.
When LaNorris Sellers is under center their offense is very dangerous, but as we found out his health is pertinent to the success of the offense. Robby Ashford clearly isn't meant to be QB1 and meant to be more of chance of pace option. Ashford is an explosive runner, but game planning against him alone makes it easier for defensive coordinators to game plan.
I will be intrigued to see how this team looks against Akron as it will give us a good idea of how this team handles a tough setback as well as how healthy Sellers is. It does sound like he is healthy enough to play, but it may be best to play it safe and allow him to get as much time before the next huge game against Ole Miss on October 5th.
That game will be in the friendly confines of Williams Brice and with a raucous crowd, a healthy Sellers, and a nasty defense the sky is the limit. The schedule does no favors for this team, but going into week 4 of the season at 2-1 shows the potential and as long as they focus on the future could be a nightmare for a few teams on their schedule.